Attending the Mini Involvement Fair

On Thursday October 23rd, I attended the Mini Involvement Fair orchestrated through the International Affairs Scholars Program. It was hosted outside of Smith-Steeb dorm building and counted as an academic requirement. This involvement fair encouraged me to branch out and join new clubs or student organizations. At the main involvement fair at the beginning of the year, I felt extremely overwhelmed because the roads were completely packed with students, at times even making it impossible to move. Apparently, it is not usually that hectic, but it certainly made an intimidating first impression for me. It was challenging to speak with people at each table because it was so loud and even hard to get to the desired tables. However, during this mini fair, there was personal time to speak with each organization’s representatives. The fair was not highly populated, and there were very few clubs so it was much easier to find out the specific details of each club and find out which I would be most interested in joining. The three clubs there I was most interested in were Student Leadership Advocates (SLA), Advocates for Women of the World (AWW), and the Collegiate Council on World Affairs (CCWA). I had no idea that any of these organizations even existed on campus, and I was really impressed with several of the events that these groups host. I learned that SLA is a group that focuses itself on coaching other organizations in the ways of leadership and development. It is an awesome resource to utilize because their workshops are free. Additionally, all of the members described the great skills they have gained from their experiences in the club without it being too demanding on time. It also is still available to freshman applicants (unlike most other exclusive clubs) because their applications open in the spring semester. Both the AWW and CCWA are strongly related to the topic of international affairs. The AWW hosts several large fundraisers annually to give back to women living in impoverished places. For example, as discussed in my international affairs seminar, women are typically at a disadvantage globally for education and opportunities. In many small, poverty-stricken places, women that are being educated are expected to fetch water and complete the “housekeeping tasks” in schools if these things need to be done. Additionally, they cannot afford feminine products while they are menstruating, so they are confined to one room covered with cardboard for an entire week. To help combat this problem, the AWW uses a portion of their funds to purchase feminine products and ship them to these impoverished areas so that the women there may have supplies free-of-charge. Additionally, the AWW hosts a weekly meeting where a member discusses a specific female issue in the world about which they are particularly passionate. This weekly activity raises awareness and is a great resource on campus to investigate further. Similarly, the CCWA involves several diverse “pillars” of events that they host, but they also focus on awareness and discussion of current international issues. The aspect I was most interested in was Model U.N., which includes members joining together and researching both sides of the international problem/debate given, to then argue against other teams from other colleges. It seems very similar to Mock Trial, a club that I was an active participant in throughout high school. This branch of the CCWA educates all of its members on both sides of a current and relevant international issue as well as teaches students to argue and negotiate peace agreements. The involvement fair expanded my scope of the student organizations at Ohio State and caused me to step outside of my comfort-zone with the organizations that I have joined.